NHER 60792 (Monument record) - Medieval settlement and other, Roman, medieval to post-medieval and undated remains

May 2002. Desk-based Assessment and Walkover Survey.
Assessment of A140 Long Stratton Bypass preliminary route options.
See report (S1) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 4 June 2015.

January 2004. Trial Trenching.
Additional phase of evaluation of site at northern end of proposed route of A140 Long Stratton Bypass (Trenches 23-24).
Revealed a single post-medieval ditch.
Finds recovered included a small number of Late Saxon, medieval and pottery sherds and a post-medieval coin.
See report (S2) for further details. The results of this work are also summarised in (S3).
Previously recorded under NHER 39671 and NHER 44503.
P. Watkins (HES), 8 June 2015.

November 2015. Desk-based Assessment.
Assessment of large proposed development area.
See report (S4) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 5 May 2023.

August 2017-March 2018. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey of possible development area.
This survey identified a range of archaeologically-significant anomalies, including a large area of complex magnetic responses in the northernmost part of the field, adjacent to Church Lane. These included positive linear anomalies likely to represent the infilled ditches associated with a number of rectilinear enclosures close to the road. Two sinuous east-to-west aligned probable ditches were potentially associated with elements of this enclosure complex, although some of the features are superimposed in a way that suggests they were probably associated with more than one phase of activity. A large number of discrete anomalies of varying form and size were identified within and close to the probable enclosures, many of which presumably represent infilled pit-like features. There is also the possibility that some of these anomalies represent thermoremnant features such as hearths or kilns, or features containing thermoremnant material such as brick or tile. Overall it is highly likely that this complex group of anomalies represents remains associated with a former area of medieval settlement, particularly as fieldwalking in 1978 identified a scatter of predominately medieval pottery sherds at this location (NHER 14109).
Elements of two possible enclosures were also identified in the south-western corner of the field, both of which would have continued beneath the 19th-century and modern houses that now lies adjacent to this section of the Norwich Road.
Various straight positive anomalies identified elsewhere in the field almost certainly also represent infilled ditches, including a number that clearly correspond with field boundaries depicted on the Stratton St Michael Tithe map of 1838 (S5). A number of the other features are however likely to represent elements of an earlier field system, including various boundaries in the southern half of the field that are perpendicular to the Norwich Road. Although the date of this earlier field system is unknown it clearly incorporated boundaries that survived into the 19th century and beyond – suggesting an early post-medieval or medieval date for the earlier elements.
Other features of note include a faint positive linear anomaly at TM 2030 9327 that appears to represent three sides of a small enclosure. Although suggested as potentially prehistoric it should be noted that its alignment is similar to that of both the former and extant field boundaries.
A weakly positive curvilinear anomaly at TM 2021 9361 possibly represents part of a small circular enclosure and is therefore another feature that could predate the medieval and later phases of activity.
Several fairly large discrete positive anomalies identified elsewhere in this field also potentially represent pit-like features, although their date and nature are unclear.
Groups of parallel weakly positive, regularly-spaced linear anomalies almost certainly represent field drains of post-medieval or later date. Many of the scatter discrete magnetic spikes were probably caused by ferrous objects in the topsoil – most likely modern debris.
See report (S6) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 23 May 2021.

August-November 2020. Trial Trenching.
Evaluation of site on proposed route of A140 Long Stratton Bypass (Trenches 65-83).
The results of this work were consistent with those of the preceding geophysical survey, with a pronounced concentration of remains identified at the northern end of the field and only scattered features present in the areas to the west and south. All of the linear anomalies investigated close to Church Lane were found to have corresponding ditches and there was also a strong correlation between the numerous pits exposed and the discrete anomalies recorded. Although work in this part of the site was hampered by flooding there was ample evidence that these remains did indeed represent an area of medieval roadside settlement.
The features of probable medieval date included numerous north-to-south aligned ditches that potentially represented plot boundaries of some kind. It is suggested that a series of similarly-aligned but much narrower linear features between two of these ditches may have been either beamslots or wheel ruts. The pits included several particularly substantial features at the western end of this concentration of remains, one of which contained a dump of flint cobbles and chalk, overlain by a dark, charcoal-rich deposit. This pit appeared to have been deliberately capped with a thin layer of chalky material – possibly after its contents had settled. The other discrete features recorded in this area were mostly small and fairly unremarkable probable rubbish pits.
Although the majority of these features produced only small amounts of pottery the nature of this material is fairly consistant and identicate these remains were primarily associated with high medieval activity, which appears to have potentially peaked between the 13th and 14th centuries. Although small quantities of early medieval pottery were recovered this material was mostly residual within later contexts. There was also little evidence for significant activity after the end of the 14th century.
Other finds recovered from the features of probable medieval date included small quantities of fired clay and animal bone, pieces of lava quern, a lead pot mend, a medieval horseshoe nail and an unidentified iron object.
A number of the linear geophysical anomalies extending from the main group were also investigated, including the sinuous east-to-west aligned anomaly that continued to the west. This was found to correspond with a substantial ditch, but unfortunately finds were limited to several prehistoric worked flints and single sherds of Early Neolithic and 11th-century pottery. A ditch associated with the similarly-extensive, but much straighter east-north-east to west-south-west aligned linear anomaly to the south contained pottery of a similar date, along with a single post-medieval sherd. The latter was potentially instrusive, although post-medieval material was also recovered from a similarly-aligned ditch to the east of the main enclosure group that was potentially a continuation of this feature. One of a pair of ditches associated with a perpendicular anomaly extending to the south contained medieval pottery.
There was little evidence for activity at this location prior to the Late Saxon period, the most notable exception being a group of intercutting pits a little way to the south of the medieval settlement, one of which contained several Roman pottery sherds and a small assemblage of animal bone.
A number of the other features recorded across the remainder of the area examined corresponded with geophysical anomalies. These included an irregular linear feature that coincided with the curvilinear anomaly recorded at TM 2020 9362, which contained a single sherd of 11th-century pottery. The large discrete anomalies at TM 2025 9357 were found to correspond with a large probable extraction pit of uncertain date. As elsewhere on the scheme a number of the ditches recorded corresponded with former field boundaries depicted on 19th-century maps, all of which had also been identified by the geophysical survey.
See report (S7) for further information and NHER 68109 for details of various additional unstratified finds recovered during this work (for which the report gives no locational information).
An archive associated with this work has been deposited with Norwich Castle Museum (NWHCM : 2021.2).
P. Watkins (HES), 20 February 2024. Amended 24 August 2025.